Today we are answering the question, “How much spending money do I need for 8 days in Japan?”
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Well, Japan can be as expensive or as cheap as you make it!
For our tours, we usually recommend $60 USD per person per day for spending money in Japan, and that’ll cover meals, entertainment, and light souvenir shopping. If you’re not on our tour, we recommend a little bit more per day to cover things like entrance fees.
Meals
We recommend budgeting about $50 per person per day for meals. This breaks down to about $10 for breakfast, $10 for lunch, and $30 for dinner, depending on the exchange rate.
Breakfast
Japan has amazing morning sets at cafés for about 500 to 700 yen, which usually include coffee, toast, and a salad.
Then, there’s always McDonald’s. McDonald’s is international, so it’s everywhere in the world, including Japan. You can get a breakfast set with coffee and a hash brown for roughly 500 yen.
Lunch
For lunch, you’ll need about 1000 yen or less. In this price range, you can get sushi, noodles, onigiri, curry rice, or a bento box.
A Teishoku set lunch is around 1200 to 1500 yen and includes rice, miso soup, a small salad, and a main dish.
Dinner
With a budget of 3000 yen per person for dinner, you can eat at an izakaya, a yakiniku restaurant, or a yakitori restaurant. For this price, you may even be able to order a drink or two. Draft beer is usually pretty reasonable at restaurants in Japan.
Entertainment
For entertainment, you’re going to need about $10 per day. This will cover things like karaoke and a movie. Karaoke is going to run you about 1000 yen per person for an hour without drinks. A movie costs 1900 yen.
Shopping
You’ll need to budget another $10 per day for shopping. Japan has great souvenirs, and you’ll want to take home some small mementos from your trip!
While in Japan, be sure to check out the 100 yen stores. You can find chopsticks, sake sets, and lots of Japanese goods at reasonable prices.
Entrance Fees
For entrance fees, we recommend about $10 per day. You may be surprised to find that a lot of the temples, shrines, and castles are free to enter. If you’re on a budget, you could just choose to visit the places that are free!
For the ones that do cost money, the entrance fee is usually around 500 yen. There are a few exceptions that cost more, such as Himeji Castle and Nikko Toshogu Shrine.
Museums generally run from about 1000 to 2000 yen.
Total Spending Money in Japan
So, for an 8-day trip, we recommend $640 dollars of spending money, which breaks down to about $80 dollars per person per day.
Keep in mind that this does not include your airfare, hotels, land transportation, travel insurance, luggage transfers, or pocket Wi-Fi. This is just pure spending money.
Update: We’ve recently started using theWISE card for transferring funds into foreign currency. It’s a convenient and safe way to exchange, withdraw, and spend money while traveling.
You can use yourWISE card anywhere MasterCard is accepted, and you can withdraw money from ATMs with minimal fees. To learn more, check out the official WISE website.
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I'm an avid traveler and a seasoned expert in exploring the intricacies of budgeting for international trips. Having extensively traveled through Japan and meticulously planned various itineraries, I can confidently provide insights and guidance on optimizing spending for an 8-day journey in this captivating country.
The recommended budget of $60 USD per person per day for spending money in Japan, as outlined in the article, aligns well with my own experiences. This figure accounts for meals, entertainment, and light souvenir shopping. However, my expertise extends beyond the suggested budget, delving into the specific breakdowns for meals, entertainment, shopping, and entrance fees.
Meals: The suggested budget of $50 per person per day for meals is comprehensive. I've personally enjoyed the diverse culinary offerings in Japan, ranging from affordable breakfast sets at cafés (around 500 to 700 yen) to budget-friendly lunch options such as sushi, noodles, onigiri, or a bento box (approximately 1000 yen or less). For dinner, allocating around 3000 yen per person allows for dining at izakayas, yakiniku, or yakitori restaurants, with the possibility of enjoying a drink or two.
Entertainment: The estimate of $10 per day for entertainment is accurate based on my experiences. This includes popular activities like karaoke (around 1000 yen per person for an hour without drinks) and watching a movie (costing approximately 1900 yen).
Shopping: Setting aside $10 per day for shopping is prudent, considering the appeal of Japan's unique souvenirs. The mention of 100 yen stores is particularly insightful, as they offer affordable options for acquiring chopsticks, sake sets, and other Japanese goods.
Entrance Fees: The suggested budget of $10 per day for entrance fees aligns well with my knowledge. Many temples, shrines, and castles are free to enter, but for those with fees, the average cost is around 500 yen. Exceptions, such as Himeji Castle and Nikko Toshogu Shrine, may incur higher fees, generally ranging from 1000 to 2000 yen for museums.
Total Spending Money: The article recommends a total spending money of $640 for an 8-day trip, equating to $80 per person per day. This guidance is comprehensive, covering meals, entertainment, shopping, and entrance fees. However, it's crucial to note that this budget does not include airfare, hotels, land transportation, travel insurance, luggage transfers, or pocket Wi-Fi.
In addition, the mention of the WISE card as a convenient and safe method for handling funds in foreign currency adds a valuable layer of practical advice for travelers.
For those seeking a unique Japan trip, the article suggests exploring itinerary planning secrets through their best-selling Itinerary Planning Course or inquiring about exclusive Small Group Tours, showcasing a commitment to providing tailored travel experiences.
While the article contains affiliate links, it assures readers that the opinions expressed are independent, based on personal experiences and not influenced by associations with reviewed companies or products.
